The SAFPA committee experienced a busy period during the last quarter, particularly in the field of education. This area is subject to large amounts of red tape and we find that we spend a considerable amount of time on this subject.
Economy
The mood in the country has turned positive during the last two months after the political changes within the ruling party. Business confidence has improved during January and we are being made aware that certain sectors in the economy are recovering. This is borne out by the PMI figures released during the last week of the month. They increase from 44,9 to 49,9 for January. The figures point out that the local manufacturing sector started the year on solid ground compared to the recent past.
This augers well for the fluid power market, as we see the effects of major business decisions some months down the line. An improved market is expected during the second quarter of the year.
Education
Education remains our key focus at SAFPA. We continuously explore opportunities to identify service providers and member companies who are in a position to train our youth in the field of fluid power.
A further challenge we are facing is securing a pipeline of students wishing to enrol for studies in our industry. JFa2 College in particular is finding this a problem at this stage. We urge our member companies to identify possible recruits and guide them in the direction of the college. SAFPA is pursuing further opportunities in training and once we have more detailed information we will communicate it to the industry.
Safety in fluid power
From time to time we become aware of incidents by users of fluid power equipment who do not practice safety in the workplace. Recently there have been two such incidents. SAFPA will be sending out a communication with photographs of these examples to make the market aware of the dangers of unsafe work practices.
We are also planning a technical meeting on safety, using existing ISO standards as a guideline to sensitise our members to procedures that should be followed in the use of fluid power components and the assembly of systems.
| Tel: | +27 11 061 5000 |
| Fax: | 086 589 2158 |
| Email: | safpaservices@vdw.co.za |
| www: | www.vdw.co.za |
| Articles: | More information and articles about SA Fluid Power Association (SAFPA) |
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